Caudle, Kron, Maxson and Davis all find the net as ETSU rolls over Upstate

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (September 23, 2011) – Freshman Jenna Caudle (Middletown, Md.) kicked things off with a goal in the eighth minute and fellow newcomer Kristi Davis (Edmond, Okla.) capped off the scoring spree with her second collegiate goal in the 77th minute, as the ETSU women’s soccer team went on to blank USC Upstate, 4-0, in its Atlantic Sun Conference opener on Friday night at Summers-Taylor Stadium.

“We’re very happy with the performance tonight,” said head coach Adam Sayers. “We’re excited about starting the conference season off on the right foot, and it’s good that we got a good performance, especially following on from last Saturday, and we certainly got that.”

The Lady Bucs (5-3-0) got things off to a fast start and didn’t look back. ETSU took 32 shots, one shy of the season-high set against Alabama A&M, to outshoot Upstate by 27, with 18 attempts coming on goal.

Senior goalkeeper Caitlin Gaughan (Indianapolis, Ind.) didn’t have a busy night, but nevertheless it was a successful one. Gaughan made one save off just five shots faced, and recorded her fifth win and third shutout of the season.

Just over a minute of the game elapsed before the Lady Bucs started the onslaught. Sophomore Ramey Kerns (Kings Mountain, N.C.) took the game’s first shot at the 1:05 mark, and ETSU was off and running.

Upstate’s (1-8-1) Sarah Plantz was called on to make two of her 13 saves when Caudle and Kerns took back-to-back shots on goal in the seventh minute. As has been the theme for most of the year, Caudle would not be held scoreless too much longer.

Senior Genna Petersen (Loveland, Ohio) found the team’s leading goal-scorer with a through ball up the middle of the field a minute after Caudle had just taken her first shot of the game. Caudle sprinted ahead and, with nobody but Plantz in front of her, took a nearly perfect shot that settled just inside the right post to give the Lady Bucs the early advantage. The goal was Caudle’s sixth of the year, and she has now scored in six-consecutive games.

Samantha Kron (Paradise Valley, Ariz.) came into the game with two assists off corner kicks, but in the 33rd minute, the sophomore found a different way to impress from the corner. Kron sent in a left-footed corner from the far left side that curled around and snuck just inside the near post for her first goal of the season as ETSU added to its lead.

“You just try to get it there and sometimes it takes a [good] bounce,” commented Kron on her goal. “I actually did it left-footed last year. It’s just one of those things where if it happens then that’s great, but it someone gets in there to get a head on it then that’s awesome too.”

Holding a 16-3 advantage in shots, ETSU headed for the half with a two-goal lead.

The writing on the wall did not change into the second half, as Taylor Maxson (Lewisville, Texas) joined in on the goal-scoring festivities. Two and half minutes after the start of the half, junior Morgan Thomas (Maryville, Tenn.) played an excellent ball to Petersen at the top of the box. Petersen quickly touched the ball over to Maxson who fired into the left side of the net for her second goal of the year.

The Lady Bucs continued to dominate, outshooting Upstate 16-2 through the second half, but were not satisfied with the, 3-0, lead.

With under 15 minutes to play another freshman, Davis, got an opportunity to score and took full advantage of it. Sophomore Kayla White (Virginia Beach, Va.) had the ball in space near midfield, and sent a through ball directly up the middle that Davis won before blasting her first collegiate goal into the left side of the net and all but sealing ETSU’s fifth victory.

“Every pregame goal we set was accomplished,” added Sayers. “I thought it was a very professional performance from start to finish from everyone involved, and I’m very happy.”

The ETSU women’s soccer team will play again less than 48 hours after the conclusion of tonight’s game, as they host UNC Asheville on Sunday at 1 p.m.

The ETSU athletic department encourages fans to come out to the next ETSU home game and participate in the Wendy’s Win promotion. With tonight’s win, fans in attendance received a coupon for free food at Wendy’s, and the same will happen for every ETSU home win.

For more information on ETSU women’s soccer, please visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the women’s soccer links. Fans can also follow the Lady Bucs on Facebook at ETSU Buccaneer Women’s Soccer.